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“At this point, she may as well just stay in her room,” Damon said as he reached us.
Silva was behind him in the most beautiful red silk. Hathor’s color. But then again, Silva was married, so hopefully Hathor wouldn’t be upset.
“But she was ready when I saw her,” Silva added when Damon gave her a drink from one of the servers.
“Hathor is the least of my worries,” my mother said, looking around the ballroom.
“If she is the least, does that make me the greatest?” I asked.
She did not answer, causing my father and Damon to chuckle.
I looked upon the guests who had already arrived. Suddenly the doors opened, allowing entrance to a new guest, and my mother cursed under her breath for the first time that I’d ever heard.
“That whore.”
I was so taken aback that I stared at her in amazement. Only when she took a step forward and my father grabbed her arm, stilling her, did I get over my shock.
“Do not make a scene, my love,” my father whispered.
“How dare she come here?” my mother said with a hiss.
I finally turned to see Verity, but it was not Verity my mother had an issue with.
It was the woman beside her. Dressed in jewels with a grand wig and her dress of heavy silks stood the Dowager Duchess of Everely. I looked to see if Evander was with them, but he was not.
“Remain calm,” my father said to my mother as the dowager and Verity made their way to us.
My mother lifted her head, breathing through her nose. On the other side of her, I watched as Damon took Silva’s hand and stepped farther away from our mother. Should I have moved, too?
“Lady Monthermer, how splendid your home is,” the dowager said.
My mother stared at her for a long moment…too long.
“Thank you, Your Grace,” my father spoke for her. “It was chaos, but my wife has managed to pull it off once again.”
“Yes—”
“Verity,” my mother cut her off, “how beautiful you are. Every time I see you, it is as though I receive a vision of your mother.”
“Thank you, your ladyship,” Verity replied. “Though I do not know if I live up to the grace of my mother.”
“Yes, the duchess was very well received by all. In fact, even the queen considered her to be the crown jewel of the season. She would never have been held as a mockery to the nobility at court.” My mother smiled and looked over to the dowager, who was now glaring at my mother.
My father squeezed her hand.
My mother said to Verity, “You have her grace. Do not worry. Such things are what we are born with.”
“If only those with such high birth lived longer,” the dowager said, and now I truly felt as though I should move back.
I looked at Verity to see if she wished to escape, but instead it seemed she was rather amused, eagerly waiting for my mother’s next jab. And my father could not grip strong enough to stop her.
“Yes, if only. But it is better to have a short and noble life, forever held in high esteem and beloved, than to be shameless, pretending to be something one can never be. And marring such beautiful silks and jewels with a stench that cannot be removed, thus decreasing their value altogether. As I told your mother, Luella, once, if you put a pig in a dress, it is still nothing but a pig in a dress.”
My father’s eyes shot to me, willing me to say something.
“Mama,” I said, placing my hand on her arm. “I fear now upon seeing Verity’s dress that mine might not be up to par. Should I change?”
“No, my dear, both you and Verity look splendid. As I said, it is a thing of birth,” she replied, and my father again looked at me. Luckily, she switched her attention to Verity. “Come, my dear, I wish to introduce you to friends of mine. I fear for the company around you at times.”
